warm and welcoming. I truly believe that Paiste cymbals are works of art and every cymbal they put out is amazing.
The same goes for Drum Workshop. John Good and Don Lombardi put their heart and soul into their drums and you can hear it. They’re the best sounding drums in the world.
All my products are the best for me and they reflect who I am. And, the people behind the products are all wonderful individuals.
GEARBOX
Drums
DW
10” X 8” Rack
9” X 12” Rack
14” X 12” Floor
16” X 14” Floor
18” X 16” Floor
20” X 18” Kick
23” X 18” Kick (Alt)
14” X 5” Edge Snare
Cymbals
Paiste
15” Dark Energy Hi-Hats w/ 4”bell chime on top
16” Sound Formula Crash
18” Dark Energy Crash
22” Traditional Light Ride
17” Dark Energy Crash
18” 2002 China
Hardware
9000 single pedal
Heads
Remo
Racks & Floors — Coated Ambassador Top
Clear Ambassador Bottom
Snare — CS Coated Ambassador
Kick — P3 Clear
Sticks
Regal Tip Curt Bisqueras’ “Groovers”
Misc
Slug Percussion Beater / “Green”
Microphones
Audio Technica
RM: Well, that’s the best reasons for having endorsements – to make you sound better and to have a personal relationship with the craftsmen. It’s ultimately a give-and-take, which benefits all involved. As you know, I’ve taught and written about this topic and I believe it’s crucial for our readers to hear the right reasons coming from you, a top player.
CB: Yes, it’s a partnership and it’s important not only because they support us, but also because we’re the mouthpieces for them. We’re the living proof that when we’re out there playing their products and making them sing, that’s the payoff for our companies. Every company has such a wide variety of artists, each with their own style and sound.
You know, a football is a football and with that arena, it’s more about the player and not the product. Whereas in our world, you take a 20” ride cymbal and 20 different players and each one can make it sound different.
cLosIng TIME
questions and sharing stories with fellow drummers. Hopefully, they can take away something, which might help them one day.
PLAY TIME
RM: Another wonderful thing we get to be appreciative for is our association with our instrument companies. We’re fortunate at this point in our careers to have endorsements and to have their support and amazing instruments as our tools. You know this is a topic very close to me. Tell me about your associations. CB: I have DW Drums, Paiste Cymbals, Regal-
Tip sticks, Slug Percussion Beaters, Remo heads and Audio-Technica microphones. The reason why I’m with these companies is not because I get the products free or because they place me in ads…these are the products I truly believe in. I’ve been playing Regal-Tip sticks ever since I first picked up a pair of sticks. They’ve been around the longest and they’re still thriving.
I was introduced to Paiste and to you from Jim Keltner, Jeff Porcaro and Chad Wackerman. They brought me in because these were quality cymbals that they believed in. I always believed Paiste was in a class by itself and when I was introduced, it was very
Rich Mangicaro resides in Los Angeles and is the percussionist/vocalist for Glenn Frey& Joe Walshof the Eagles and is also one of the directors of the global music company Nova Tunes. For the past 19 years, he was the Director of Artist Relations/ Music Education for Paiste America, bringing such drum stars to the Paiste endorsement roster as Tool’s Danny Carey, Tommy Aldridge, John “JR” Robinson and Josh Freese. Along with providing unprecedented service to their artist cliental, Rich was also instrumental in the design, development and launching of Paiste’s most innovative and top selling cymbal lines. To this day, he is considered one of this country’s foremost authorities on the subject of Artist Endorsements. For more information, please go to www.insidetheplayersstudio.com.
RM: Well Kirkee, we’ve covered a lot of wonderful areas here. Is there anything that comes to mind in conclusion today?
CB: World peace, invest young…get your SEP IRA together!
Honestly, support live music…leave the concert if there’s lip-synching going on! Support real singing, even if it’s bad because we have to support our fellow, live musicians. Also, look out for my band, Bisquera Brothers – one of the best bands in the world, who never plays! Hopefully, you’ll see us one day, in a town near you.
You know, Curt Bisquera is far from being an unsung hero and after all the years knowing him, I’m glad to hear him sing the truth here. His story is an inspiring one and tells us that if we persevere, play from our hearts, be humble and respect one another, success lies ahead. Success and joy in it’s many forms, from this wonderful world of making music is what drives us. As I’ve said before, we drummers make people dance…what a great job!
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